But one of the most poignant stories comes straight from Malaysia, where the family of flight attendant Sanjid Singh Sandu is devastated after learning he only boarded the aircraft so he could get home earlier. Sandu leaves behind a 10-year-old son and a wife, also a Malaysia Airlines flight attendant, who narrowly escaped a similar fate on Flight 370 when she swapped shifts.

"I beg the rebels to please be human for one reason. At least release the bodies," Sandu's father tells CNN. "They want to fight, they can go ahead fighting."